KUALA LUMPUR, July 31 2017 : Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Anifah Aman today cautioned Parti Warisan Sabah (Warisan) to not raise the issue of the Philippines’ claim over Sabah as the subject to serve its own “gutter politics”.

Anifah who is also the Kimanis Member of Parliament (MP) said the accusation by the party’s secretarary-general Loretta Padua Jr that the government did not want to conclusively resolve the claim made by the Philippines on Sabah, was baseless.

“This accusation is baseless, provocative, misleading and is to be condemned in the strongest possible terms,” he said in a statement released by the ministry, here today.

The minister also repeated the government’s position that the Philippine’s claim on Sabah is without basis and that Sabah has been recognised by the United Nations and the international community as part of Malaysia since its formation on Sept 16, 1963.

“As such, Malaysia does not recognise and will not entertain any claims by any party on Sabah,” he said.

Loretta had on July 28, accused Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein of trying to divert the question on the claim, posed by the party’s president, who is also Semporna MP Datuk Seri Shafei Apdal in Dewan Rakyat a day earlier, by raising the threat of the IS group in the region.

Anifah said as an MP for some years, Shafie was well acquainted with the Malaysian Government’s position on the issue.

“By the same token he is also well aware that the matter falls within the jurisdiction of the Minister of Foreign Affairs and not the Minister of Defence…and his party’s subsequent response is mostly an attempt to confuse and mislead the people,” he said. – Bernama